Spark Thermionics
Spark Thermionics plans to prototype a new type of thermionic energy converter (TEC) based on a microfabricated architecture, an innovation developed at Stanford. This prototype will be the foundation for the development of a manufacturable TEC with efficiency of >30%, surpassing all other forms of direct heat-to-electricity conversion, in a package scalable from watts to megawatts. This new class of thermionic converters could dramatically impact carbon emissions and energy utilization in a number of applications. Spark Thermionics was selected to join the first cohort of projects at the Cycolotron Road accelerator at Lawrence Berkeley Labs.
Team Members
Dan Riley (PhD, Phys), Jared Schwede (PhD, Phys), Nandita Bhaskhar (PhD, EE), and Prof. Roger Howe (EE)
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Spark's Cyclotron Road profile
Fortune piece on clean tech scene at Cyclotron Rd. features Spark Thermionics September 2016
Spark's R&D is revitalizing the field of thermionics research March 2016
Spark wins $3.6M ARPA-E grant to develop clean thermionic generator December 2015